That's pretty much par for the course with laptop batteries. The two worst things you can do to a Lion:

A)Keep it fully charged and hot. B) Cycle it from fully charged to dead flat.

Both are things that most people do. When you run your laptop plugged in, the charger charges it fully, and the running laptop gets quite hot. This is hard on a Lion. The other thing people do, is run mobile until the battery is dead and they shut down. Then they charge it when they can. This also is hard on a Lion.

The best thing to keep your Lion alive is that when you're plugged in to power, charge it half way, then remove it from the computer so it doesn't get hot. Only fully charge it when you need to go mobile, and shot down when you're maybe around 25%. Now, who does that?

Also, if there is any doubt about whether a modified sine wave invertor is bad for my laptop, why not spend $100 on a pure sine wave model, just to be sure? I'd spend that on a UPS/surge protector at home, why not for the truck?

Also, if there is any doubt about whether a modified sine wave invertor is bad for my laptop, why not spend $100 on a pure sine wave model, just to be sure? I'd spend that on a USB/surge protector at home, why not for the truck?

Probably can remove the battery.

If anybody *wants* to spend the money on pure sine wave, knock yourself out. There's no good reason *not* to. I'm just saying that you don't have to.

You shouldn't have a computer with you anyways, it's called "getting away from it all" for a reason.

We all have our own vices when camping. Some people carry laptops. Some people carry a lot of camera equipment. Some people carry really fancy knives so they can make sushi.

Some people hike or canoe for camping and think any gas powered vehicle is unnecessary and spoils the atmosphere.

Having a computer and having Internet access are two different things. My laptop is my GPS, my maps, my phone book, my MP3 player, my OBD2 reader, my tech manual, memory card dump, etc... As much as I hate the way it looks, fits, and goes against the rules of "camping", it's too much of a time saver to leave behind when needed.

But it's when using it as an MP3 player that I noticed something was not right. I have the laptop plugged into my stereo via an 1/8" plug. When the inverter is off, everything is good. But when the inverter is turned on, the music has a "buzz". This is what made me look into this some-years ago and that's when I found out the difference between pure and mod sine wave.

About that same time this really small company in town called Rosetta-Stone was having issues with computers dieing. In fact, Rosetta-Stone spent big $$$$ for all new MAC computers for everyone in the office and replaced thir PCs. My ex-wife received her MAC Pro and 3-moths later the battery was done. The computer crashes did not go away with all new equipment. Long story short, it was "dirty power". This was probably a combination of old wiring in the warehouse Rosetta-Stone lives in, and the power from the sub-station. Rosetta-Stone/Fairfield Language installed an electronic device to "clean" the power into a more stable wave. It worked, and that also sparked my interest on the subject.

We've all probably got "dirty power" in our homes or offices. It's just not as dirty as others or not bad enough to cause problems. Visit an audiophile forum and you'll learn more than you'll ever need to know about that. My ear, or budget, has no idea what some of those guys are trying to say, but it all relates back to dirty power.

Anyway, we know there is "dirty power". That's a fact. We know items such as Laptops are sensitive electronics. So why would you even risk plugging your $1,500 computer into a $29.00 inverter? It has nothing to do with Monster Cables, and it has nothing to do with how much load is applied. Dirty power is dirty power, and dirty power can harm electronics.

You'll spend $270.00 on a deep cycle battery, $400.00 on a camp stove, $200.00 for a pair of sunglasses.....why not spend $130.00 on a quality inverter? I mean come on....it like using a surge protector on your desktop....you just do it.

You'll spend $270.00 on a deep cycle battery, $400.00 on a camp stove, $200.00 for a pair of sunglasses.....why not spend $130.00 on a quality inverter? I mean come on....it like using a surge protector on your desktop....you just do it.

Good point Dan. I have not researched inverters much, but this discussion demands a more detailed look. Xantrex makes a few nice ones. It looks like the pure sine wave models in the 400-600 watt range are about $400. Where have you found a pure sine wave inverter for $130?